Sightless
by the loudest sound
Summary: '"If I had known my life was about to change dramatically, all because of some boy I had just met, I would've worn better shoes." "I recommend combat boots. They are quite comfortable."' A Percy Jackson AU.
1. Annabeth I

_Written for Jayne Mays writing prompt. _

_Title: Sightless_

_Summary: '"If I had known my life was about to change dramatically, all becuase of some boy I had just met, I would've worn better shoes." "I recommend combat boots. They are quite comfortable"' A Percy Jackson AU. Annabeth's POV._

_Special thanks to _PJATOROCKS09_, my wonderful beta and _Jayne Mays_ for waiting patiently for me to hurry up and finish writing. This is dedicated to my friend Willow, for encouraging me to 'hurry my butt up' and finish this, after only reading the first three lines. _

* * *

><p>The alarm clock brings me to the world of the living and I groan internally at the sound. My hand feels heavy as I drag it to my bedside table and slam it down on the alarm. The silence consoles me and seems to lull me into a half-awake numbness.<p>

With a heavy sigh, I throw off my comforter and sit up.

It takes a minute or two for me to actually stand and shuffle across the hall and into the bathroom. I frown when I see my hair.

"This'll be fun to brush," I say, sarcasm heavily dripping from my words. My reflection looks like Medusa or some other terrifying monster from Greek mythology. I attempt to rake a comb through the blonde curls, but eventually give up and decide to take a shower. Just as I'm about to turn on the water, a growl from my empty stomach makes me rethink my decision.

I saunter downstairs and find my two brothers and step-mother eating at the kitchen table.

"Good morning, Annabeth," my step-mother greets, reading the back of the cereal box.

"Morning, Helen," I reply, grabbing a bowl from the cupboard. I've called never called Helen 'Mom'. Even when I was little, right after she married my dad, I refused to call her anything but her first name.

"Your father is at the store. He should be home soon," she says. _Great to know_, I think. Wow. I am moody today.

"Mmkay," I say quickly. I pour a good sized mound of Cocoa Puffs into my bowl and drown them in milk. With the soggy mush sliding down my throat, I rest my chin on my hand and sigh.

"I'm tired!" Mathew whines.

"No duh!" Bobby retorts. My twin stepsiblings exchange a few short arguments, but Helen tells them to hush. When I finish my cereal, I rinse the bowl a few times in the sink and set it inside Helen's larger bowl.

"I'm going to take a shower," I say, clambering up the stairs.

"Alright. Try to keep it short," Helen calls up stairs as I lock the bathroom door.

When I get out of the shower, I almost trip over the bottle of conditioner I knocked down from the edge of the tub. I kick it out of the way and hitch my towel higher up under my arms.

I dress quickly, hating the rush of cool air that sweeps over my exposed flesh.

"Annabeth, phone!" Helen yells. I didn't hear it ring, but I pick up the wireless in my room.

"Hello?"

"_Annabeth!"_

"Thalia?" I'm a little shocked. I didn't know Thalia got up this early.

"_Who else?"_ she snaps.

"Well, now I see why you don't get up early."

"_Hilarious. Do you think you can give me a ride to school?" _She asks quickly. Thalia Grace has been my best friend for years. I've known her since we were seven.

"Yeah, of course. Jason too?" I ask. Jason is her little brother, who is only a couple years older than the brats—my nickname for Matthew and Bobby.

"…_Yeah. My dad just left this morning for business and now my mom is all mopey and crap._" I can almost hear Thalia's eye roll. Her father is this big time company owner, who shares the business with his two brothers. I've met her dad a few times and personally, he scares me to death.

"Kay, I'll be there soon."

"_Alright. See you soon." _I hang up the phone and start drying my hair with the towel as I walk back to the bathroom.

"Annabeth, I'm talking the boys to school," Helen shouts.

"Alright." I lightly put on some eyeliner and mascara, than I brush my teeth.

I sprint to the garage, grab my backpack on the way and unlock my hand-me-down Jeep Ranger. It used to be Helen's, before the twins came along and she couldn't bear to let it go.

I drive a few miles to Thalia's two-story Victorian house and honk when I pull up front. Thalia comes right out, not fitting in against the cream colored house. She's wearing her signature ripped black skinny jeans, combat boots and a tight black shirt. Her spikey black is a little bit longer from the last time I saw her and almost touches her shoulders.

"Hey! Thanks for doing this. Jason's just getting his shoes on." She rolls her heavily lined, electric blue eyes and climbs into the car. I left the top off, because I like the feeling of the wind, no matter how tangled my hair gets.

"Jeez Thals, lighten up on the eyeliner. You look like a raccoon!" She gives me one of her death glares. This I know, because I've seen her give it to the preps at school all the time.

"This is how I like it. This is how it stays," she snaps.

"Are you having anger issues again?" I ask. I know it's a bad idea. Thalia was born with her fathers' temper.

"_Annabeth!"_ She screeches. I put my hand on her shoulder which does not help me at all.

"I was just kidding Thals," I say. She huffs and crosses her arms over her chest. By now, Jason is out of the house and almost to the car.

"Hi, Annabeth," he says cheerily, climbing into the back of the Jeep. I start the car back up and begin driving again.

"Hi," I respond, glancing in the rearview mirror at him. His blonde hair is messy and disheveled.

"Gosh, Jason! Did you _even_ brush your hair?" Thalia asks, turning around in her seat to look at him.

"Crap! I knew I was forgetting something," he says, raking his fingers. Thalia and I exchange a knowing look.

"Alright, what's her name?" Thalia asks, continuing to turn around in her seat look at him.

"I…I have no idea what you're talking about," he counters quickly.

"Jason! What's. Her. Name," Thalia demands, her eyes seeming to get brighter. I shrink away from her a little. Jason meets her gaze with sky blue eyes, but it wavers slightly and his whole barrier collapses.

"It's Piper, okay?" He holds his hands up in defense and sags against his backpack.

"Hmph. Sounds alright." Thalia huffs again and turns back looks out the window. Well, the nonexistent window, but whatever. "Annabeth? Do you know what it means?"

"Why do you expect me to know?"

"Are you kidding? You're like a walking dictionary!"

"So…"

"So…do you know what it means?"

"Possibly," I say. It's actually a very easy name to remember. Simple meaning too.

"What is it?"

"Thals, think about it. Piper, means flute player. It makes total sense," I say. Thalia rolls her eyes.

"I don't pay attention to stuff like that!"

"Don't you think you're being a little over-protective?" I ask.

"No," she says.

"But I'm fifteen!" Jason says from the back, poking his head up by our elbows.

"Yeah and I'm seventeen. So that means I have the right to be protective." Thalia holds a stubborn look and looks forward at the road. We're almost to our High School now.

"Oh Thalia," I mutter. I pull into the parking lot and find a spot.

"Annabeth!" a voice from behind me yells. I turn around to see my boyfriend, Luke Castellan, walking over to the car.

"Oh, hi, Luke!" I say with a small smile. Luke and I have been dating for three months now, but it just isn't…working out. Well, for me at least.

"I missed you this weekend," he says with his signature smirk. I can tell Thalia rolling her eyes behind us. I try to say something, but by then, Luke has seized my lips with his and wound his arms around my waist. When he pulls away, leaving me breathless and flustered, I blink a few times.

"Hi Thalia and…Jason, right?" Luke says, his eyes focused over my shoulder.

"Luke." Thalia addresses him coldly. Luke is a year older than us, but when we were freshmen, we were both in love with him. Luke had always been _popular_, but Thalia and I had wormed our way into a freshmen clique. Eventually, we got fed up with the constant gossip and bitchiness. One day, while at the local coffee shop, Thalia and I told our 'friends' off and after that Luke just kind of…stuck with us. When he asked me to one of the many school fundraisers, instead of Thalia, she decided that she hated him.

"Yo, Luke!" a voice yells. Luke looks over at one if his bonehead friends, then back at me.

"See you later?" he offers, a grim smile on his face. I ignore how much his scar shows when he does this and nod.

"Right," I say. He pecks my lips and jogs off.

Luke is the kind of guy born into popularity. In a way, he looks like Jason, but his hair is a sandy-golden color, his eyes are a little bit darker blue. Then there's the scar. A thin line of white scar tissue running down the side of his face.

I asked Luke about it once. He said when he was little that he fell down the stairs in his house. I didn't ask about it again.

"Thalia! Jason! Annabeth!" a voice calls enthusiastically. I'm getting really tired of people calling my name today.

"Oh, hey, Bianca." I look up in time to see the olive skinned, dark haired, senior hug Thalia tightly.

"What no 'Hey, Nico'?" I roll my eyes as Bianca's little brother approaches. They could actually pass for twins, because they both like so alike, but Nico is a little taller and more…Gothic? I guess?

"Hi, Nico," Thalia mutters distastefully. Nico rolls his dark brown eyes and holds open his arms.

"C'mon, I'm your cousin too. I deserve a hug," he tells her. Bianca and Nico di Angelo are actually Thalia's cousins. Her father's two brothers each have two children. I only know Bianca and Nico because they live close to Thalia and Jason. In fact, I don't even know the other two, nor do I know their names.

Thalia gives Nico a short hug, but before I know it, the elder di Angelo sibling is squeezing me tightly.

"Hi…Bianca," I say.

"How was your weekend?" Bianca asked, stepping back and smiling at me.

"Boring. As usual," I say. Bianca laughs and shrugs.

"It couldn't have been that bad," she says.

"You have no idea," I mutter with a sigh.

"Percy!" Thalia screams. We all look over to see a guy about my age walking towards us, with unruly black hair. Behind him, a younger guy who looks about Jason's age with mousy brown hair. She runs over to where he is and tackles him. He staggers backwards but manages to stay standing.

When the two boys get over to us, I see that the boy with black hair has vivid sea green eyes, while the other boy has chocolate brown. Bianca, Nico and Jason all exchange their "hellos" with the two mysterious boys. I stand by my jeep, not sure what to do. In the end, I have to clear my throat to get everyone's attention.

"Oh gosh! Annabeth, these are my cousins Percy and Tyson," Thalia beams at me and pushes her cousins over to me. I walk around my car to the small group they have all formed.

"Uh…Annabeth," I mumble, holding out my hand awkwardly.

"Percy." My gray eyes meet his sea green and suddenly it's like no one else is there. It's just the two of us.

"Nice to meet you," I choke out. He nods, his eyes not leaving mine.

"And…uh, this is my little brother, Tyson," Percy says, pulling his hands from mine. It seems to pull me out of my reverie.

"Hi, Tyson," I say, shaking his overly large hand. Even though Percy is clearly older, Tyson is more built and muscular. Granted, Percy looked _muscular_, just not ripped like Tyson. A look of shock glues itself to my face.

"I play football," Tyson explains in a deep but soft voice.

"Ah. I see. It was nice meeting you. I have to go now, but I'll catch up with you later? Right Thals?" I say, grabbing my backpack from my car and walking across the parking lot. I don't wait for Thalia to respond, nor do I look over my shoulder.

Whatever just happened with that Percy guy was…weird. I get to the front steps when I notice Rachel Elizabeth Dare cleaning up a bunch of paintbrushes.

"Watch it!" she snaps, anytime someone gets too close to a paintbrush. I kneel down next to her and help her pick them up.

"Hi Rach," I say, handing her a few paintbrushes. She glances up at me, curly red hair bobbing up and down.

"Oh, hey Annabeth. Thanks for helping me," she says. Rachel is the most art obsessed person I have ever met. I have a few of my classes with her and when the class is in complete chaos, she's the only thing that keeps me sane. Over the past few months, we've become pretty close friends.

"Yeah, no problem." I hand her the last paintbrush and we both stand.

"See you in English?" Rachel shrugs.

"See you then," I agree.

I walk up the steps and veer left so I can go to the Algebra building. An arm loops around my waist and when I'm about to turn and yell at them, I see its Luke.

"Oh, it's just you." I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Who'd you think it was? The principal?" Luke teases, bumping against my hip. I roll my eyes but sag into his side.

"No," I say, lightly slapping his shoulder, "I'm just tired. That's all."

"Alright," Luke gives me a reproachful look, "See you at lunch?"

"Lunch," I agree. He sneaks a small kiss before stalking off to the Geography building. I push into my Algebra class and take my seat, near the dirty brown chalkboard. Most of the chalkboards were replaced years ago, but my teacher, Mr. Calhoun, got stuck with one of the few ones left. The bell rings and Mr. Calhoun greets us with an exhausted expression.

"Morning class, please get out your weekend assignment," he says, as groans echo around the room.

When Algebra ends, I walk as fast as I can to English. Rachel is there, sitting next to a black-haired mystery guy. I hesitantly take the seat next to him and when I look back over at him again, I'm greeted by sea green orbs.

"Annabeth, right?" Percy asks. I nod.

"Yeah, that's me," I say, getting out my notebook and pencil. The bell has rung and Ms. Gates is writing the morning assignment on the whiteboard.

"Good morning, class," she says cheerfully. "You are going to partner up in groups of three or four and begin the assignment. If you have not finished by the end of the class, one person may take it home to finish it. It is due when you step inside the classroom tomorrow." I sigh.

"Hey, Rach, partners?" I ask her, leaning around Percy to look around her. Ms. Gates is the only one of my teachers who doesn't have assigned seats, reason being the fact that she always gives us group assignments. That way, when we get our partners, they're near us, so we can just start the project.

"Definitely," Rachel says. Then she nods her head towards Percy slightly. I take the hint and look at him.

"Want to be in our group?" I ask him.

"Sure. Thanks," he smiles.

"I imagine it would be hard to find a group when you're new." I gesture to Rachel, "This is my friend Rachel."

"Oh, we've met," Rachel says.

"You have?"

"I accidently ran into her at the Hoover Dam," Percy says sheepishly.

"Accidently ran into me? You almost knocked me over the edge of the balcony, after you tripped me during the tour!" Rachel exclaims. Percy's cheeks grow a strawberry-red color.

"Sorry?" he offers with a shrug. Rachel smiles and rolls her eyes.

"You guys went to the Hoover Dam! That's one of my favorite architectural structures!" I say suddenly.

"One you're your favorite _whaa_?" Percy asks.

"She's an architect freak," Rachel explains.

"Gee, thanks," I joke. "Really though, I kind of am."

"Okay then," Percy says. Rachel gets out her own notebook and says, "Guess we should start on the project now, huh?"

"Yeah, probably," I answer, looking at the board.

"Write a five page story with your partners using the following words," Rachel mumbles, scribbling down the words on a piece of paper.

"This will be easy," I say. Rachel rolls her eyes.

"That's because you actually know the meaning of le…leio…I can't even say the word!" Rachel says, exasperated.

"Which word?" she points to it on the board. "Leiomyoma? That's type of tumor and I only know about that because my Aunt had one in her uterus one last year."

"Too much information!" Percy says, covering his ears.

"Sorry. I'm used to it being just me and Rachel."

"Let's just get started on the story, alright?" Rachel says, as she tries to stifle a laugh.

After that, second hour becomes my favorite class.

"So did you just move here?" I ask Percy. Rachel is working on the paragraph we just put together.

"Yeah," he sighs.

"That sucks," I tell him. He nods.

"Yeah. My Mom's getting remarried again," he explains.

"Oh. Wow. So, do you like your soon-to-be-stepdad?" I ask. My mom left my dad when I was only two, than remarried Helen two years later, so I can't really relate to him. I've grown up with Helen as my mother-figure, so it doesn't feel like there's a stranger in my house. It just feels normal.

"Yeah, he's pretty cool. A lot nicer than my old stepdad." Percy sighs and turns his watch around his wrist a few times.

"So does, uh, does Tyson get his looks from your dad? Because he looks more like your cousin than Thalia," I say, trying to keep the conversation going.

"I know right?" he laughs, "Actually, I take after my dad in appearance. He got our Mom's eyes, but I'm not sure where he got the brown hair from. Probably my Mom's parents. I've never really met them, because they died when my Mom was little, but I'm sure that's we he got it from."

"I've never met my grandparents either," I sigh. My father isn't on good terms with most of his family, so we usually spend holidays alone. We're both silent for a while until Rachel holds up the paper.

"Done! You wanna read it so far?" she asks, waving around the second page to our assignment.

"Sure," Percy replies, grabbing it. I sigh.

We finish the fourth page just as the bell rings.

"I'll finish it at home," Rachel says. "See you in art," she tells me. I watch her walk out the door as I put my notebook away.

"So, what do you have next?" Percy asks me.

"Latin." I sling my backpack over my shoulders and walk out the door.

"Me too," Percy says, following me.

"Can I see your schedule?" I ask him. He hands me a folded up piece of paper from his back pocket.

"Well, we have four classes together," I say, handing his schedule back.

"Awesome," Percy says, smiling. I met his sea green eyes and can't help but smile back. We stop a few feet away from the classroom door, still smiling. I feel an arm slide around my shoulder suddenly.

"Who's this?" Luke asks.

"Oh, this is Percy. He's in my Latin class," I explain. Luke glances at me and back at Percy.

"Well, well. You new here?" He asks. Percy dips his head down in a nod.

"Uh, yeah."

"Then I guess I have to welcome you to Hell," Luke says.

"Luke," I say, slapping his shoulder. It's a habit of mine.

"What? I'm not gonna lie to him," Luke says, turning to me and grabbing my waist. He pulls me in for a short kiss and out of the corner of my eye, I see Percy glancing at his Converse awkwardly. When Luke pulls away, his face easily pulling into a smirk.

"Break it up you two," a rough voice says. We immediately take a step back from each other. Mr. Brunner, my Latin teacher, rolls over to us in his wheelchair.

"Sorry Mr. Brunner," I say quietly. He gives us both a stern nod and rolls on his wheelchair and into the classroom. I laugh a little as he disappears.

"See you later?" Luke offers with a small smile.

"Alright," I say, trying to stifle a laugh.

"So, wanna get to class before the bell rings?" Percy asks, long after Luke is gone.

"Oh yeah, you're still standing there," I joke, as we start walking.

"Yeah," he says.

"Sorry," I say, with a shrug.

"It's ok. Let's just get to class."

The bell rings just as we step over the threshold. I hurry to my seat as Percy walks up to Mr. Brunner. He's put in a seat across the room, in a secluded corner near a girl with glasses and pin-straight hair.

"Today class, you will pick partners and begin a project on a Greek God or Goddess," Mr. Brunner says. "Try not to crowd in one area. You may begin," he tells us. I grab my bag and move over to Percy as the girl turns to him with a big smile.

"So, I was wondering if you—"

"Hey partner," I greet, walking right up to his desk.

"Hey Annabeth," Percy smiles. His eyes clearly read, _thank you_. The girl pouts and stomps over to the other side of the room. I slide into the desk in front of him and pull my Latin book out of my bag.

"Okay, so what God do you want to do?" I ask, flipping to the Greek Mythology section.

"Thanks for that, by the way," Percy sighs. "And whatever you want."

"I was thinking Athena. Or maybe Artemis," I continue.

"I thought Athena was a God_dess_," Percy says. I arch an eyebrow at him.

"So? She's the Goddess of wisdom. I think she's perfect for the assignment." I roll my eyes at him and cross my arms.

"Can I see the book?" Percy grabs it and starts flipping backwards through the pages.

"We should do the report on…him!" he slams his finger down on a picture. I turn it around to see who it is.

"Poseidon? No way! Athena is so much better!" I say.

"Prove it! Poseidon is God of the oceans. You have to admit that's pretty cool," Percy says.

"No. I am not doing a report on _Poseidon_, when Athena is clearly better," I tell him. The argument continues like this for a while.

"Why don't we pick another God?" Percy offers.

"Or Goddess," I say.

"Let's just pick another one!"

"Fine," I sigh, flipping through the pages quickly. I'm surprised I don't rip one of the pages, but then I see that most of them are already ripped. "How about Artemis?" I ask, after a moment of silence. Percy reads the little paragraph on her and shakes his head.

"She hates guys! I'd rather do the report on Apollo."

"You're just being stubborn!"

"I'm being stubborn? You're the stubborn one here. And besides, Apollo is the God of music!"

"So! Being the God of music doesn't matter as much as you think it does. Not as much as wisdom!"

"I cannot believe I'm hearing this!" Percy exclaims. "How can you not like music?"

"I like music!"

"Sure."

"I _do _like music."

"Right and Olympus is above the Empire State Building!" he tells me.

"It is not!"

"Exactly!"

"It's physically impossible," I continue, then launch into a full blown rant on how the Olympus _can't_ be above the Empire State Building.

"Okay, okay! No need to talk my ear off," Percy says after moment. He covers his ears with his hands and start saying 'la la la'.

"Sorry," I say, grinning. He rolls his eyes, but smiles back.

"We should probably pick a God or Goddess now," he tells me.

"Probably," I agree.

"How about…Hestia? She seems pretty cool," Percy says, pointing at her paragraph.

"Alright. Hestia it is," I say. "I'll start looking for more things on Hestia and you copy down the notes."

"And how do you suppose I do that?" he asks.

"With a book," I say slowly, as if he was three.

"I'm not stupid, Annabeth. I don't have a book," he says.

"Oh. You could've told me that first."

"My apologies?" he offers with a confused shrug.

"Oh just go ask Mr. Brunner for a book," I say, with a huff.

"Well, someone's moody."

"Shut up!" I say, kicking his shin under the desk, which backfires completely, because I hit my shin on the metal shelf on the bottom. "When did that get there?" I rub my shin and pout. Percy laughs and stands up.

"Stay here and try not to kick anything," he tells me.

"That's real funny, Percy," I shout to him, a few people turn their heads in my direction, but most of the class is preoccupied with making paper airplanes or flipping aimlessly through pages in the book.

"Okay, got one," Percy says, sitting back down with a book in his hands.

"Alright, you start making notes; I'll look for more information."

"Are you sure you don't want to write?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Because your handwriting is better than mine."

"How do you know? Maybe my handwriting is horrendous!"

"I doubt that! You're a girl! You're supposed to have good handwriting."

"That is such a sexist comment!"

"It is not. I'm complementing girls' handwriting."

"Complementing girls' handwriting my-"

"How is the report going?" Mr. Brunner asks suddenly. I jump and turn to see him sitting right next to the desk I'm in.

"Good," I say. Mr. Brunner raises his bushy eyebrows.

"We're fighting over whose going to write," Percy pipes. Mr. Brunner nods.

"Well, good luck. May I suggest getting started on the actual project soon?" Mr. Brunner gives us both a stern look and wheels off in a different direction.

"I'll write," Percy says.

"Good choice."

We begin our project, but it seems that soon the bell rings.

"So, see you later?" I offer, as we walk out the door. He nods.

"'Kay. See ya," he responds. When I turn around to walk to Art, I'm face-to-face with Thalia.

"Jeez Thals, you scared me," I say. I start walking past her, but she spins and keeps a steady pace with me.

"So, how many classes do you have with Percy?" She asks with an innocent look. Well, as innocent as Thalia can muster with her raccoon eyes.

"Four, I think. Why?" We're almost to the Art room, but still elbowing to get the freshmen who don't know how to navigate the school that well, out of our way.

"Just…don't try anything with him."

"What on Earth is that supposed to mean?"

"Look, he just got out of relationship with some ditz name Callie or Calypso or as I like to call her, airhead-demon, so don't hurt him. You're my best friend Annabeth, but I would personally punch you in the face if you hurt my cousin. He's had a rough life, so please don't play with his emotions."

"Play with his emotions! Thalia, you are making no sense! I'm going out with Luke, remember? There is nothing between me and Percy, alright?"

"Alright, alright," she says.

"Don't you have to get to algebra?" We're standing at the door of the art room.

"Screw algebra," she says. Thalia jerks her thumb over to the front gate where Nico di Angelo and some other black-clad guy are waiting.

"See you later," I say. Most people would either be sneaking out with their best friends, or convincing them not too, but there's no stopping Thalia when she wants something.

"Adios, me amigo!" she says happily. I scurry into class before the bell rings and take my seat next to Rachel.

"Hey," she greets, with a flushed face and a breathless voice.

"Everything okay?" I ask.

"Yeah. I ran here. I had been at the main office," she says. I nod. The main office is at the front of school, whereas the art building is the farthest from it.

"Why there?" I ask quietly, as the art teacher starts droning on and on about something in the news.

"I forgot my GYM shirt, so I asked my dad to bring it," she shrugs.

"Well alright," I say.

"Ms. Chase, quiet please," the art teacher snaps. I pout and slouch in my seat. Well, stool, I guess.

"Ooh, caught by the teacher," Rachel jokes. I roll my eyes at her. The teacher begins explaining our next project, and I tune out a little.

"I don't even know why I chose art," I murmur.

"Because art is amazing, fun and important to modern society," Rachel says from somewhere to my left.

"Shhh, you're not allowed in my daydream," I shake my finger at her and go back to 'La La land'.

"Um, Annabeth? We kind of have to start our project now," she tells me.

"What is our project?" I ask, turning my head to face her.

"We have to create a painting of a childhood memory, and then present it to the class when everyone is done."

"Sounds like fun," I say with a grim smile.

"It does," Rachel nods.

"I was being factious."

"Oh."

Her smile drops like a brick falling off a building. She whaps me in the arm with her paintbrush and gets up to claim an easel.

"Jeez Rachel, when did you become so violent?" I ask, jumping up and heading to the 'smock stand'. It's really just a coat hanger with tons of smocks covering it, but Mrs. Pryce, the teacher, insists we call it a smock stand.

She can call it whatever she wants. To me, it looks like a fat, lumpy ghost who likes to hand out smocks and stand in a room filled with paint fumes all day. Rachel and I named him Gary. I grab two smocks and walk over to the two easel's Rachel claimed for us.

"Your smock, Mi'lady," I joke, with a small bow to follow.

"Why thank you, dear servant," Rachel cries in a mock, 'southern belle' accent. We giggle like we're eight and put on our smocks.

"Do you girls know what you want to paint?" Mrs. Pryce asks.

"Yes," Rachel says, smiling, as she walks over to the paint tray table.

"Not exactly," I say.

"Well, what's a good childhood memory of yours?"

"I…don't really…have one," I say slowly. "Either that or I can't remember."

"Well, try to remember your childhood. I'm sure it'll come to you," Mrs. Pryce pats my shoulder and walks to the next easel. Rachel returns with an assortment of dark colors on her paint tray.

"I wasn't sure what colors you'd want, sorry," she shrugs.

"It's fine; I don't even know what to paint yet." I sit back on the stool behind the easel. Since we don't have enough easels at school, some kids sit at their tables and start drawing a draft to their paintings. Mrs. Pryce isn't usually strict about painting on the first day; she says it's alright to use that day to brainstorm. I'm convinced that Mrs. Pryce is Bipolar.

"Ow! Frick! This is _ABUSE_!" I look across the room as Melanie Hopkins throws another bottle of paint at Vera Carter.

"Girls!" Mrs. Pryce hisses, stomping over to them. This how Melanie ended up in the corner like a three-year-old as Vera scrubbed the paint off her face with a paper towel. She sits back down at an easel with red cheeks and a dot of orange on her nose.

"Hey Rach…whoa!" Rachel has turned her empty canvas into a shaded picture of broken pieces of glass in a far corner. She's starting to draw the outline of a large hand holding a smaller hand.

"Hmm?" she turns to look at me, a few smudges of paint on her face.

"That's amazing!" I tell her.

"Thanks," she says, with a sheepish grin. She begins painting again.

"What is it supposed to be?" I ask.

"The only time I spent time with my dad." She sighs. I know Rachel has a bad relationship with her dad, but I didn't know it was that horrible. "We were decorating my room and I dropped a mirror. I accidently cut my hand on a piece of glass when I was trying to clean it up. My dad helped me clean my hand and wrap it up in a bandage. I like to pretend he was just holding my hand, not bandaging it."

"Wow, I'm sorry," I say. She shrugs.

"I've never been close to him. It doesn't really matter to me anymore."

"Well, it's a beautiful painting."

"It's not even finished," she sighs.

"Still," I insist, wishing I had that kind of talent.

When art ends I stomp to my next class, only because I didn't even start painting yet.

I stumble a bit, and look down at the crack in the sidewalk I tripped over. Suddenly a body slams into mine, sending me down to the concrete.

I land on my back, but hit my head on the sidewalk. I feel the other person land on my stomach and cough a little. A familiar face appears above mine, with a small smile, as if to say 'sorry'.

"Hi."

With a sigh, I say, "Hi Percy."


	2. Percy     II

_Written for Jayne Mays writing prompt. _

_Title: Sightless_

_Summary: '"If I had known my life was about to change dramatically, all becuase of some boy I had just met, I would've worn better shoes." "I recommend combat boots. They are quite comfortable"' A Percy Jackson AU. Annabeth's POV._

_Special thanks to: _PJATOROCKS09_, my amazing beta who I constantly annoyed this past week, my wonderful reviewers, though there were few, who all apparantly 'loved this', and also to everyone who added it to their story alerts. I appreciate the attention. _

_AN: I also wanted to note that: I do not own PJO! I created Cassie Grace, Thalia and Jason's momma. I didn't remeber the color Silena's hair, so it's just going to be dark. This chapter is in Percy's POV. Also, for fellow Americans I meant no offense to the people who live in the South! It was douchy Luke's fault! Although, I do luff Luke 3! Anyway, reviews are loved! _

* * *

><p>"I am so sorry!"<p>

"Percy, let it go!"

I'm walking with Annabeth to GYM and by the look on her face she's probably going to smack me soon.

"I didn't mean to run into you though! I was pushed!" I gasp, slowing my 'jog' to catch my breath. "Has anyone told you that you walk too fast?

"Oh really? Who pushed you then?" She quips, disregarding my question and only frustrating me further.

"I don't know! Some senior with an eye patch!"

"Oh," She gulps, "That's Ethan Nakamura. He's, uh, he's Luke's best friend."

"Charming. You got a keeper, that Luke."

"Whoa," She grabs my arm and pull us to a stop, "You are in no position to be saying that."

"If makes you feel better, it doesn't make any difference to me."

"Thanks," She responds dryly.

"Look, Annabeth, he just doesn't seem like right kind of guy for you."

She chews on her bottom lip as she begins walking again. "You don't know that."

"Sure I do. He's a jerk." I shrug and continue walking.

"Percy! You don't know anything about him!" I stay silent and she smiles in triumph. Annabeth was right; I didn't know anything about him. He was still a total ass though.

We parted ways, and I headed into the boys' locker room. After a short argument with the coach, and digging my schedule out of my backpack, the coach gave me a dingy pair of extra GYM clothes, for situations like this. They kind of smelled like old pizza and socks, but they would have to do.

The coach made sure I spent the whole time running and each time I passed Annabeth playing a game of softball, she smirked and chuckled a little. Her face was red, her hair out of place, but each time she pitched or batted, her eyes lit up.

After GYM, when we all stand outside waiting for the bell to ring, I walk up to Annabeth as she wipes the sweat dripping the side of her face with her shirt.

"Hi," I say.

"Hello," she nods to me. She's still wearing her GYM clothes, and re-doing her ponytail.

"So, you like softball?" I ask, kicking the toe of my shoe on the ground. She smiled at me.

"You bet! I'm Co-captain of the team! We have a game today. You gonna come? Thalia and Jason usually do, believe it or not." She smirks.

"Thalia? Wow. I'm surprised. "

"I know right?" She laughs. "Anyway, are you coming?"

"Yeah, sure." I shrug. Annabeth smiles.

"Awesome! See you there!" She says excitedly, before jogging off to a girl with dirty-blonde hair in a tight bun on top of her head who is waving around a granola bar.

I meet Thalia and Jason near the parking lot. Jason is wearing a smug grin as Thalia growls at anyone within three feet of her.

"Are you okay?" I ask, poking her in the shoulder. She slaps my hand away.

"No."

"She got a detention," Jason smirks. Thalia sticks her tongue out at him.

"What did you do now?" I ask, somewhat afraid to hear the answer.

"I got caught sneaking out with Nico and some weird loner, whose name I don't even know. But anyway, you're giving us a ride home today."

"Um, alright?" I pull the keys to my Step-dad's car out of my pocket.

"How did you get here anyway?" Thalia asks, as I begin walking away.

"Uh, Paul let me borrow his Prius." Thalia bursts out laughing.

"Prius. Very manly." She bites her lip to keep from laughing and nods her head. Jason rolls his eyes.

"C'mon, you little delinquent," Jason says, grabbing Thalia's upper arm and forcing her to walk into the parking lot.

"Skipping school one time is not truancy!"

"Right, because this is the first time you've skipped school."

I chuckle and turn back to the school. Tyson appears in my line of vision soon after. As soon as he's close enough, I begin walking.

"Hey," he says lightly punching my shoulder.

"Hi," I respond. "Ready to go?"

"Well nothing's keeping me here." He looks at me for a moment with critical eyes.

"Oh, shut up." I push him forwards to the car as Thalia and Jason wait near a random tree for us.

"We got lost," Thalia says shortly.

"Were in a parking lot, Thals. We just couldn't find the car." Jason rolls his eyes. Thalia narrows her own eyes and pushes Jason towards the tree.

"Violent," Jason mutters, stumbling a little.

"Don't mess with the anger impaired!" She punches him in the shoulder and turns to me, "Now where the Hell is this girl-ish car of yours?"

"It appears someone would like to walk home today," I say, refusing to look at Thalia.

"Yes, indeed, it does," Jason agrees.

"Oh, shut up! I'd like to leave now!"

"Fine, fine," I say. Tyson is already standing by the Prius, three cars away from the tree.

"Shotgun!" Thalia yells, running towards the car.

"Not fair!" Jason counters, running after her. My cousins are five year olds.

Once we finally get on the road, Thalia leans over and begins flickering through the channels on the radio.

"Horrible stations," she remarks, finally settling on a song by the Fray and leaning back into the seat.

"Well, I'm sorry that the radio doesn't have a station for just your music," I say, rolling my eyes at her.

"Hush up. Do you have a little iPod cord thing?"

"Uh, yeah, I think." I open the little console between the two seats and pull out a white cord. Thalia excitedly takes it and plugs in her iPod Nano, in a black case, of course.

"What shall we listen to first?" She asks.

"What do you have?" Jason groans as I say this.

"Well, Green Day, Evanescence, some We the Kings, Foo Fighters, a few songs by Paramore and No Doubt, Fall Out Boy, one or two songs by Red Hot Chili Peppers, some Boys Like Girls, Linkin Park-"

"Okay, I get it!" I say quickly, stopping her from listing off more names. She smirks and shrugs lightly.

"What do you want to listen to?" she repeats.

"Just pick something random," Tyson says quickly. Thalia shrugs and quickly taps the 'Shuffle' button.

A Green Day song immediately begins and Thalia starts bobbing her head to the beat. Jason is humming the song to himself in the back.

"You know this?" Tyson whispers.

"Thalia blasts her music every day, and my room is right across the hall from mine. I practically know every song," Jason responds.

"I'm so proud," Thalia says, lightly swatting my arm. I glance over at her and roll my eyes. After five minutes of driving, I pull up next to the Grace's front yard. Thalia pushes open the door, swinging around the corner.

"Mom! We're home!" She calls.

"In the kitchen!" Jason closes the door behind us as we all walk into the kitchen. Since I was little, the high ceilings and sterile whiteness of their house has always intimated me. Their house is huge, with Grecian themes throughout most of it. We enter the kitchen, and I watch as my curly-haired Aunt spins around quickly, a plate of cut up apples in her hands.

"Percy, Tyson! What a surprise!"

"Hi Aunt Cass," I greet, giving her a hug as she kisses my cheek. Tyson copies. She sets the plate down on the table and turns to Thalia and Jason, both who are snacking on the apple slices.

"How was school?" She asks calmly.

"Thalia got a detention for tomorrow," Jason replies.

"Dude!" Thalia snaps, whapping her brother's arm. Aunt Cassie sighs, wiping her hands on her flowery apron.

"Thalia, your father left this morning, and you're already getting into trouble? I should send you to a correction facility." Aunt Cassie gazed stoically at her eldest child. Thalia stood up.

"Wow Mom, pulling the 'Dad-just-left' card on me? That's low." Thalia stormed out of the kitchen. I could hear her combat boots stomping on the stairs until the last step.

"I'm sorry you two had to see that," Aunt Cassie murmured, turning around as she sniffled a little. From the few times I had stayed the night at this house, I knew it was tough on everyone when Uncle Z left.

"That's alright. We all know how she can get sometimes," I say quickly. Suddenly music, with very loud bass, starts blasting from upstairs. Aunt Cassie sighs.

"Want me to go tell her to turn it down?" I ask shortly.

"You can try. Thank you, Percy." I nod and fast-walk into the living room, then to the stairs. I knock on Thalia's door, which I know is hers' since it's painted black with the words 'Do Not Enter' painted in large red letters. Plus, this room is clearly the source of the loud, rock music. I knock on the door once, and Thalia immediately pulls it open.

"What?" She hisses venomously.

"You mom wants you to turn down the music." Thalia raises her eyebrows and storms over to the old stereo on her dresser. Thalia's room, to say the least, is a mess. Her black walls are covered in posters, song lyrics and random red paint splatters. Her furniture is worn and covered in stickers. Her bed is just a mattress thrown on the floor, black and red sheets tossed carelessly around the room.

"She wants me to turn it down, huh?" Thalia sneers, turning the volume up a few notches.

"What's the matter with you?" I ask, grabbing her wrists as she spins back towards me.

"What's the matter with me? It her that's the problem!" Thalia shouts, pointing in the direction of her door and wrenching her wrists from my hand. "Every time he leaves, she finds a way to blame everything bad on me! She just thinks he's cheating! She doesn't trust him! And it's all my fault!" Thalia kicks the dresser and throws a few articles of clothing around the room. She kicks the edge of her mattress, flying across the room with shaking hands, and sinks to the floor in front of it.

Slowly, I sit on the floor next to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She flinches at first, but leans into me after a moment, eyes staring at the floor.

"Let's go to Annabeth's softball game. Get your mind off things," I tell her, "We can go get something to eat before the game starts." Thalia nods. I help her stand up and she crosses into the bathroom and closes the door behind her. I go back into her room, turn down the music and head back downstairs.

Aunt Cassie is wringing out her hands near the sink, the water flowing over a package of unknown meat.

"I was wondering if I could take Thalia out to eat and get her, ah, cooled down?" I ask, twiddling my thumbs nervously. I've seen Thalia angry too many times to count. Aunt Cassie? Not so much. It was a little unnerving to see such a fragile looking woman glare daggers at her oldest child.

Aunt Cassie nods, her eyes still harshly glaring at her hands.

"Thank you, Percy," She says quietly, turning back to the sink. Thalia comes down a moment later, face cleaned up and a thick layer of eyeliner re-applied. Tyson and Jason follow us as we walk to the car, and the ride to the fast food restaurant is quiet and tense. We order to-go and sit on a local park picnic table.

"Thalia, cut it out," I say, dodging another fry. She cackles manically and pops a few fries in her mouth. Wiping her hands on her jeans, she quickly checks her phone and stands up.

"We should get going. Annabeth's game is about to start." With that being said, we all toss out our trash and race to the car.

The parking lot is almost full by the time I put the car in park. I nearly run into the school gates chasing Thalia, attempting to get my phone back. She laughs so hard, she almost falls over, so I hook my arm around her waist and hold her in the air until she drops my phone.

"Put…Me…Down!" she shouts, kicking her feet and struggling to get away.

"Well, well," I hear a voice say from behind me. I put Thalia down and turn to meet the sarcastic-looking eyes of Luke, Annabeth's boyfriend.

"Luke," Thalia snaps, "shouldn't you be giving your girlfriend a pep talk?"

Luke and his group of morons laugh a little and Luke rolls his eyes.

"Shouldn't you be down South if you wanted to kiss your cousin?" Luke counters. Thalia growls at him and begins to charge forward.

"Thalia, don't let him bait you into a fight. You're a lot smarter than that," I say, reasoning with her. She still strains against my hands but snarls to herself and spins around.

"If you and your stupid logical thinking weren't here, I so would've kicked his ass!" She growls, jabbing a finger into my chest and stalking off towards the fields. Tyson and Jason had gone ahead to find seats, and once Thalia got there, they were in for an earful.

"Why don't you find someone else for you and your little groupies to giggle about?" I say, after Luke smirks at the sight of Thalia's retreating form. He raises his eyebrows and walks right up to me, only about a third taller.

"Watch what you say, Jackson. There are sometimes you should just keep your mouth shut. You better learn your place," he half-snarls, shoving me to the side as he walks away. I silently fume for a few minutes before storming off to the field. Once in my seat, Thalia hands me a small bag of popcorn and chews on a few pieces angrily.

"Stupid Luke," She mutters. Apparently, the game had already started. We all sit, cheering when needed. I watch Annabeth most of the time, not really paying attention to the score.

I can't really think of a word to describe Annabeth. There was something more to her other than a pretty face. An unspoken wisdom in her words.

Wow, all this thinking is making me incredibly poetic.

Luke and his little group start climbing up the bleachers. He sneers at me when he passes, but continues walking.

"Luke is stupid," Thalia mutters, "I wish Annabeth would just dump him already."

"Why?" I ask, too curious for my own good.

"Because he's not good for her. She needs to find someone who can not only keep up with her and that psycho mind of hers, but also a guy who won't act like a total di-"

"Language," Jason chimes, from Thalia's other side. Thalia rolls her eyes.

"Whatever. Anyway, she needs to just get rid of him."

"I agree," Jason says, "And I hardly ever agree with Thalia." Thalia opens her mouth to snap at him, but shrugs and nods.

"Yeah, he's got a point."

"What's his deal anyway? I mean, why does he act so…so?"

"Douchebag-like? He's just a spoiled kid who gets everything he wants." Thalia shrugs, and throws an icy glare over her shoulder at Luke.

"I think I'm gonna go get a soda. I'll be right back," I say, standing up.

"You sure? The games almost over," Jason reasons. I shrug.

"I'll be right back." I jog down the steps and walk to the small concession stand at the edge of the field. As I'm paying for my drink, I hear a familiar laugh behind me.

Luke and his groupies are right there, standing in line behind me. Luke walks up and puts his hands down on the table.

"Hey there Silena," he tells the pretty dark-haired cashier. "Can you get another one of those?" he asks, eyes flitting over to the cup in my hand. He smiles brightly at her. Blushing, Silena turns around to grab another cup.

She turns around and places the cup on the table in front Luke, and he hands her the money, his hand lingering on hers for a few unnecessary seconds.

"Keep the change," he says, flashing another smile at her. He throws an arm over my shoulder and begins steering me back to the bleachers, and the eye-patch kid, Ethan, grabs the cup of soda.

"What was the reason for that?" I ask. "You already have Annabeth."

"What, Silena? Oh, she's nothing but a mere midnight stand, if I've ever seen one."

"Don't talk about her like that," I snap. He freezes and walks a few paces ahead of me. I take the chance to sip out of my soda. Wow, I am so stupid.

"You don't even know her Jackson. You're defending a total slut."

"And your acting like an asshole," I say. He just laughs. "How did you even get Annabeth?" He stops laughing and looks at me with raised eyebrows.

"You know_nothing _about my girlfriend."

"I know she doesn't belong with an undeserving, asshole like you," I tell him.

"Percy!" Annabeth hisses, walking over to where Luke and I are standing. Her hair is out of place, she's sweaty and red-faced, but she still manages to pull it off. "What is your problem?"

"You came at just the right moment, Annabeth," Luke says, placing his arm around her waist. She elbows him in the stomach and steps away from him.

"Annabeth, I know you're mad-" I began.

"I'm a lot more than mad!" She snaps. "You have no right, to just waltz on into town and start pestering everyone! Maybe you should think before you speak!"

"You're right," I say, "I'm sorry." I begin walking away. I hear Luke teasing me about something, and Annabeth harshly telling him to 'shut up, you moron. You're not off the hook, either' and then begin fighting with him about something.

When I can no longer hear them, I climb back up the emptying bleachers and sit at the very top. It doesn't take very long for them to clear out. Thalia sees me from the now empty spot we were sitting at and quickly walks over to where I am.

"Hey," she mutters.

"Who won?"

"Our team. Of course. What about you?" she was asking about the stupid insult war with Luke.

"Annabeth walked up just as I called Luke an 'undeserving asshole'."

"Ouch."

"Yeah."

"Was she mad?"

"Pissed."

"Of course."

"I remember you telling me stories about your easily angered and occasionally scary best friend. I had no idea you were serious."

"It's strange. Not a lot of people take me seriously." I push her shoulder and she laughs and throws a few popcorn kernels at me.

"Want to hear something incredibly sappy and totally un-guylike?" She sighs.

"Oh, why not?"

"I'm glad you're my cousin, Thalia." She looks over at me, a light smirk on her face.

"Ditto."

"Thanks," I say. She punches my shoulder lightly. Annabeth is standing in front of the bleachers, staring up at us with glaring eyes. Thalia sighs and stands up.

"I guess that's my cue. I'll be right back," she says.

"Okay." I hear her clomping down the steps and the sound of her shoes on the gravel when she reaches Annabeth.

"Hey," Thalia greets, and I'm surprised that I can hear them from way up here.

"Hi," Annabeth says, sighing. She sits on the first row of bleaches and digs the toe of her shoe into the ground.

"You okay?" Thalia asks, sitting next to her.

"I broke up with Luke," Annabeth sighs and I try to ignore the flush of relief that overwhelms me.

"You know you should've done that long ago," Thalia says, staring at her feet. I expect Annabeth to be mad, but she just nods her head.

"Yeah, I know."

"How he take it?"

"Badly," Annabeth says, glancing at Thalia with a smirk, "Of course."

"Of course," Thalia echoes, shaking her head.

"You know, if I had known my life was about to change dramatically, all because of some boy I had just met, I would've worn better shoes." Well, I wasn't expecting that turn in the conversation.

"I recommend combat boots. They are quite comfortable," Thalia says. Annabeth snorts.

"I guess I should go talk to him now, huh?"

"Yeah, probably. I'll be with Jason and Tyson and the concession stands, alright?"

"Mmkay. See you soon," Annabeth says, standing up and turning around. When she meets my eyes, I give her a little half-wave. She returns it. Thalia gets up and walks away as Annabeth begins to climb up the bleachers to where I'm sitting.

"Hey," I say, glancing at her stormy gray eyes.

"Hey," she greets.

"I'm sorry about what I said," I say, scratching the back of my neck, "You know, to Luke."

"It's fine, I guess. It was true."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. You were right," She says, with a distasteful look, "and it's killing me to say that."

I laugh, really full-out laugh. She smiles.

"Thanks for admitting it," I mutter, kicking her shoe with my own. She kicks me back.

"I wrote a poem once," she says.

"Really?" I say, faking amazement. She whaps my arm.

"Oh shush! Anyway, I wrote a poem in eighth grade or something about Luke."

"How'd it go?"

"'These sightless eyes,

Cease to see

The girl in the mirror,

Staring at me

Oh sightless eyes,

Stubborn and blind

He does not know, nor does he see,

We are plainly meant to be'"

"Pretty," I say, "I had no idea you were a poet."

"Oh, I'm not," she says, laughing lightly, "It took me a few days to come up with that. I don't think I could write another one like that."

"So, why are you telling me about this poem?"

"Because, it isn't true anymore. We were not meant to be. Luke is just a jerk," Annabeth says sighing.

"Sorry it didn't work out between you guys," I say.

"No, you're not."

"You're right, I'm not."

"You wanna know how I know?"

"Because you're just that smart?"

"No. You're smiling like you won the lottery." Oops.

"Maybe I have," I say.

"Not yet," she replies, staring critically at me. I gulp.

"Well, a guy can sure hope, can't he?" She laughs and nods. "Are you mad at me?"

"Yeah, kind of. But I'll get over it."

"I can deal with that."

"Percy?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." I look at her, as she stares at me with large eyes.

"For what?"

"Trying to protect me, when you hardly even know me," she says, "from Luke and my own blind stupidity."

"I don't think you can ever qualify as stupid. But you're welcome. And we do know each other some," I say. "Plus Thalia used to talk about you all the time."

"She used to talk about you a lot too," she says, blushing slightly.

"Of course she did," I say with an eye roll.

"Don't worry, it wasn't anything bad." I laugh at this, I can't help it. Thalia is my _cousin_. I know her.

"Bullshit," I say. Annabeth laughs, eyes twinkling. "You're kind of distracting," I say after a moment.

"How so?"

"It's just hard not to stare at you." I nearly facepalm at how stupid that sounds. She blushes slightly, and gives me grin.

"Ditto."


End file.
